


Baby On Board.

by JaithLover_Voltron (BadThingsHappen_Voltron)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Mpreg, baby project
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-23
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2020-03-10 00:04:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18927250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BadThingsHappen_Voltron/pseuds/JaithLover_Voltron
Summary: James and Keith are paired up for a project that will supposedly help them bond as teammates. Chaos is sure to ensue.





	1. A New Arrival.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tricodeku](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tricodeku/gifts), [matty_macgregor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/matty_macgregor/gifts), [AppyNation](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AppyNation/gifts).



"griffin, keith," shiro calls them back after their latest meeting about implementing some new courses for the younger garrison students, "can i see you two for a moment?"

they stare at each other for a moment before going up to him. that's when they notice a carseat that's covered by a pink and white striped blanket. shiro goes and takes the blanket off, revealing a baby that looks a lot like james.

"whoa, whoa, whoa, shiro," keith says, dumbfounded, "uh... where-where'd you get the baby? i'm pretty sure that just because you're captain of the atlas doesn't get you a free pass to kidnap someone's kid."

"sam and i came up with the idea and, with the help of pidge, we created her," shiro answers, "she's the first of many highly technologically advanced baby dolls that can simulate the needs of a real baby, and you two are the perfect candidates for the project we're undertaking to see how well this works in creating a bond not only between parent and child, but between the partners themselves."

"oh, no, no, no, no, no," the voltron leader shakes his head, "i mean, seriously, shiro? i'm not good with kids. i've never even spent time with an infant before."

"as much as i hate to agree with keith, commander shirogane," james pipes up, making keith glare at him, "i'm gonna have to ask how this specifically is the best way to help us become better... partners."

god, just saying the word made his skin crawl.

"if you can work together in raising a baby," shiro replies, "you can work together on the battlefield and in the training sessions. you two still bicker and pick fights like cadets, and it's time for you guys to get your acts together and quit your petty qualms with one another, is that understood?"

they both sigh and nod simultaneously.

"good," the atlas captain praises, "now allow me to show you two to your new quarters where you will be staying for the next couple of months."

"alright," keith says, then registers what shiro just said. "wait, _months_?!"

* * *

"and this is the nursery where the baby will be sleeping," shiro opens a door to a sickeningly pink room with a crib at the far end of the wall, a dresser next to it already filled with clothes and diapers, and a changing table, again, already filled with everything they would need, "the supplies will last you a couple weeks, but you can always ask for extras in case you run out of anything."

keith feels like he's gonna pass out. already, they've built a fucking baby room?? so this isn't some weird dream that he can wake himself from. this is actually fucking happening.

james, on the other hand, is actually getting used to this already, and they haven't even started the damned project yet.

"good luck, you two," shiro says before walking out of the room.

"this is so ridiculous," keith mutters under his breath, "why did we have to do this stupid thing again?"

"shiro says it'll help us to become better teammates," james answers, placing the carseat by the crib. the little doll sitting in the carseat squirms and cries out, and james looks concerned-- _actually fucking concerned_ \--as he kneels down and begins to unbuckle her. he then picks her up carefully and shushes her, rocking her from side to side.

keith is so annoyed at how easily james seems to fall into the routine already while he's still adjusting.

"how, though?" he snaps, watching with annoyance at how delicately his partner is treating the doll. it's just a creepy lifelike doll, why is he treating it like it's an actual _baby_?? keith doesn't get it at all.

"did you not hear shiro?" james snaps back. "if we can help each other out when taking care of a baby--"

"a _doll_ ," keith quips.

a roll of the eyes is given in response.

"whatever," james shrugs, "we can work on helping each other out on the battlefield."

keith sighs and rubs his temples, looking annoyed. "but did they have to make it so _real_ -looking?"

a shrug again. "i think she's cute."

"yeah," keith responds sarcastically, "'uncanny valley' cute.. are you _already_ smitten over it?"

" _her_." the correction earns an eyeroll from his partner. "and yeah, i mean, look at her. how can you not immediately fall in love with that cute little face?"

"i can think of a couple of reasons," the black paladin mutters under his breath, turning to walk out to their living room. if james wants to play with a doll like a little girl, he can do it without keith. there's no way in hell keith is letting himself get attached to a damned bundle of vinyl and wires.

 


	2. First Night with Baby.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James and Keith's first night with baby girl is... more or less as you'd expect. Sleep-deprived partners plus a fussy baby who doesn't want to fall asleep equals a not-so-good combination.

the wails of the baby immediately snap james and keith from their sleep. keith looks at james in annoyance, as if he was the one that caused the baby to cry just to wake him up.

james waits a while before sarcastically saying, "oh, thank you, keith, i really appreciate your help," and getting up to tend to their "daughter". picking her up out of the crib, he holds her against his chest as he walks out to the kitchen, figuring she might want a bottle.

bingo.

he feeds her for a while--he didn't make that much, only about four ounces--and then burps her, the standard feeding routine. he then rocks her back to sleep in the rocking chair, watching over her for a few minutes to make sure she's okay, and then goes back to the bedroom to lay down. not fall asleep--because what if she starts crying again and he needs to get her?--but lay down.

just like clockwork, she's not even asleep for an hour before she starts up again. james willingly gets up to change her diaper, only to have her spit up on herself. he changes her pajamas and, again, rocks her back to sleep.

as he watches her again this time, he remembers his childhood, when he was about eight, and his sister lucy was only a couple of weeks old. she had been a fussy baby much like this little darling is being right now, and their parents were often gone during the night, so he would have to get up to calm her down and get her whatever she needed.

if he could get up at all hours of the night for his baby sister, he can do it for his daughter.

a couple more rounds of this, and james is all out exhausted. he goes back to the bedroom for what feels like the seventeenth time, and luckily, no more cries interrupt his sleep for a while. within minutes, he's out like a light, and it doesn't seem like he's getting back up anytime soon, much to the utter aggravation of his partner.

pretty soon, as if the gods had cursed him somehow, keith is awoken by the wails of the doll again. he knows that he can't just stop it by placing his pillow over his head--trust me, he's tried to before, it never works... ever--so he mentally curses james for suddenly becoming a heavy sleeper and finally gets up.

trudging down the hall to the nursery, he scoops the doll up by one arm and holds her as far away from him as possible, making a pathetic attempt to rock her that way. this action only makes her scream louder, so he groans and brings her closer, much to his displeasure.

sitting in the rocking chair, he begins to slowly rock her, a look of wariness on his face as he glares down at her as if she'll suddenly snap and murder him in cold blood. fortunately, though, nothing of the sort happens and she actually begins to relax a little bit. within a few minutes of her being rocked like this, she finally falls asleep. keith would never admit it out loud, but... she's actually kinda sorta cute when she's not screeching your eardrums off.

knowing that she'll wake up and scream an hour later anyway if he sets her back in the crib, as well as he and james having to work with the mfes and paladins tomorrow afternoon, he decides to just carefully grab a blanket from his and james' room and make a decent, albeit a little uncomfortable, bed out of the rocking chair. within minutes, he's out like a light.


	3. Entitlement Doesn't Equal Reward.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and James' first outing with baby is an utter disaster. That's... all I have to say.

james is standing at the doorway with a smile on his face when keith wakes with a start because of the little baby squirming. luckily, she only squirms for about a second before settling again, and he looks down at her, eyes showing the love he'd never admit out loud to anybody else. he then notices james watching them and quickly goes back to feigning disgust.

"you saw nothing," he snaps, shoving the doll into james' arms as he walks past him out to the living room.

"uh," james laughs, "i'm pretty sure i saw you warming up to our baby."

keith scoffs in response. "i was only comforting the stupid thing."

"mhm, that's totally why you stayed in the room cuddling up to her instead of getting me to comfort her," james retorts, walking into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for them and their daughter. "hey, before i forget, we're going out to the clothing store to get some outfits for her."

"why, the plain onesies and sleepers aren't enough?"

"i want her in something more colorful, though, like pink or blue."

"why does it matter, though?"

"because, keith, she's supposed to be treated like a real baby, and real babies have more than a couple outfits. besides, she'll probably stay tiny so that we can dress her up without having to worry about if anything fits her."

keith doesn't roll his eyes this time, just groans. "do i really have to go with you?"

"c'mon, this will be our first outing."

"okay, okay, fine," keith grumbles, "can't believe i'm actually doing this."

james and the little doll exchange similar expressions before he takes her into the nursery to get her changed.

* * *

"oh gosh, keith, look!!" james squeals excitedly as he pulls a pink dress lined with white lace at the collar, sleeves, and bottom hem out of a racket of dresses similar in design but in different colors. "hang on, i need to find out the price of it because i totally want to get it."

keith only smiles haphazardly, glancing over at his partner who's acting like a child in a candy store. james, meanwhile, is not that far from the cart and the baby, so he gets wary when he sees a woman, about 30-ish looking with an adorable little 2-year-old boy at her heels, sauntering over casually to look at her. they've gotten stopped by some people on the way to the baby section, so he knows these two are probably up to no good. he puts the dress back, taking note of where he put it for later, and just watches what they're doing.

"mama, mama," the boy says excitedly, pointing at the carseat, "baby! wanna hold baby!"

"alright, alright, ollie, settle down," the woman chastises gently, not even saying no, "i'll let you hold her for a while, okay?"

then this lady has the nerve to start unbuckling their baby from her seat! who the hell does this stranger think she is?!

"hey!" james shouts, getting the woman's attention, though not deterring her from still attempting to unbuckle his daughter, "what the fuck, lady?! get the hell away from my baby!"

"i don't think you understand, young man," the lady says in a saccharine tone of voice, "my little oliver was just wanting to hold her for a while. she's a really beautiful baby."

"so you think that gives you permission to just take her out of her seat?! hell no!"

at this point, the baby starts to wail and scream at this unfamiliar person touching her, as she's grown used to only james and keith holding her after just a day, making james' heart pang with guilt for leaving her alone. he just wants to scoop her up and not put her down for possibly the rest of the day.

"mama," the boy whines loudly, "wanna hold baby!!!"

"hold on, sweetheart."

"wanna hold baby now!!"

james has never wanted to spank a child this young up until this moment, and it takes all his willpower not to parent this lady's kid for him and teach him what 'no' meant.

"i just want him to hold her for a little bit," the woman's cheery mood begins to kind of falter, "i've had a long day at work and i can't deal with anymore stress."

"i said no," james' tone of voice is firm and serious, "now get the fuck away from my baby before i call security."

"what's, uh," keith asks, walking up to the four, "what's going on here?"

"this lady apparently thinks it's okay to try to steal our baby!"

keith immediately brings out his knife and shows it off discreetly. the woman notices and her mood instantly changes.

"you have a weapon in the store?! just because you're one of the paladins of voltron doesn't give you the right to wield such a dangerous object in a family-friendly store!"

"it's not so friendly when your kid's being awoken and taken outta her carseat while her parents aren't looking just because some entitled woman's fucking brat wants to hold her for all of two to three seconds," keith retorts angrily, getting between james and the lady, "and i ain't just a paladin, i'm the fucking _leader_ of voltron. so i don't think these store employees give two-thirds of a shit whether i have something for defense on me. in fact, i know most of these employees and their boss. now how many of these employees know _you_ well enough to let this situation slide or even justify your actions? because as far as they're concerned, it looks like you'd be accused of attempted kidnapping."

keith can't see it, but james is giving him a small smile at how protective he's being over the baby. it makes him fall that much more in love with him.

the lady scoffs and lets go of their daughter, finally, and drags her whiny little demon spawn away from them. once james makes sure that she's not coming back for another round of berating and hissy fits, he unbuckles the poor shaken little baby and holds her closely, consoling her. he then goes and hugs keith after the baby is settled down a bit.

"yeah, yeah, yeah," keith remarks snarkily, "don't mention it. i know how attached you've grown to the thing."

james just laughs. "wanna go home?"

"what about the outfits?"

"we still have time to pick some out. but i think after what happened, i'm still pretty shaken up."

keith gives his partner a small smile, and they walk out of the store.


	4. A Nice Gesture.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James decides to do something nice for Keith after the incident.

after the incident in the store, both james and the baby were left shaken, with them not wanting the other out of their sights. driving back home was like a nightmare for both of them, so keith had to do some improvising, which james really appreciated him for.

in the end, keith is tired of the baby’s fretting. he tells james to sit in the backseat with her and takes the wheel before he does something he might regret later. he tries to remain angry, he really tries. he focuses on the road, grumbling under his breath; of course everybody seems to be out to get him. he glances in the rear-view mirror and the sight of james looking at their _daughter_ with that soft look on his face softens him.

a little.

he’s never seen james this enamored. it surprises him just a little. it annoys him a little too because, hell, this is not even a real child. he doesn’t speak up for the moment, knowing it would be useless. at least now the wretched thing has quieted, a mercy for his ears.

they reach home and keith is happy to leave this ordeal behind him. a part of him is still appalled at the way that woman had behaved in the store—he might not like children, but who in their right mind tries to pluck someone else’s kid from their carseat?

if he’s annoyed by this, however, james is downright traumatized. he won’t leave the kid alone, cooing to her, soothing her the second she starts fretting. she sounds tired, and keith is surprised that he’s already starting to understand her cries.

he thinks nothing of it, though, and leaves his partner and the doll alone, going to lay down in the bedroom.

* * *

james, meanwhile, is still thinking back to what happened a few moments ago. what if he hadn't have been close by? this lady could've easily taken off with their daughter, so easily. and the way she screamed... he never, ever wants to hear that come from her again.

he attempts to find something to keep her close in so he can work on what he's planned for keith without having to get her every five minutes. lo and behold, it seems like shiro was looking out for him as he had found the wrap in the closet. putting it on and making sure it doesn't hurt his back, he places her inside it, and she seems to not really like it at first. then after a while of james walking around the house, she calms down.

"there we go, precious," james coos to her softly, rubbing her head in tiny circles with his fingers, "you're okay now, huh?"

a soft little gurgle is given in response, making him chuckle and give her a little smooch on top of her head.

"now," he says, reaching into the bottom of the kitchen cupboard, "whaddaya say we make your papa a nice dinner, hm?"

james then begins to prep dinner with the baby snugly inside the wrap. before it's done, however, she's fast asleep, and he gently sets her down in the crib. after setting the table, he wakes keith up and instructs him to keep his eyes closed.

* * *

"three... two..." james counts down as he leads his partner out to the kitchen, "one. okay, now open them."

keith does as instructed and is greeted with a very nicely set table, complete with candles and some nice silverware.

he isn’t sure what it is he's seeing. The table is set, this in itself isn’t that strange, but for some reason, james has taken out the nice silverware and the expensive crockery. it’s unusual, especially coupled with the two candles burning, shedding a yellowish light into the otherwise darkened kitchen. the smells of food hit him next. he sees pots left to simmer on the stove.

"did you… make dinner?" keith asks while james invites him to sit.

james chuckles. "is that so surprising?"

"no! it's just… i thought you wouldn't be away from that doll after what happened earlier."

james shrugs. he brings over a hot pot that he sets in the middle of the table. there's no hiding the expectant look on his face when keith takes a sniff. keith almost wants to roll his eyes. of the two, james is the one with the cooking skills, so of course, whatever he’s come up with will be delicious.

for a moment, they're both too engrossed into their food to talk. after his nap, keith is ravenous. he'd never expected that dealing with a fake baby would be such hungry and tiring work. he has no doubt that the shadows he sees beneath james' eyes mirror his own.

"by the way," james says once the food is half-gone, "i'm going to the garrison tomorrow. will you be okay to look after the baby?"

keith looks up, aghast, almost choking on his portion of food. "excuse me? I can't be alone with that thing. i'll kill it without meaning to and you'll hate me."

james shakes his head. "i know you won't. i know i can trust you with her."

of all the things keith has done so far in his life, this is the most daunting. he'd rather face a hundred galra warships than one baby.

"ugh," he groans in response, "fine. but if you come home to find me dead somewhere, don't blame me for being wary of her."

james chuckles. "duly noted."

they finish up dinner in silence, and keith helps james with cleaning up. after that, they both go to their room to watch television before falling asleep.


	5. Some Alone Time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is alone with the baby after James is called in for work by Shiro. It's an interesting experience, more or less.

"what?!" james asks into the phone, baffled by what shiro had said. "i have to stay there for how long? no, you said only three hours, not until nearly midnight!"

keith can't help but overhear from his place on the couch, watching 'pops in pennsylvania'. he's already on season 2 and halfway through it. besides, james is pacing the hall and it's kinda hard not to listen in.

"shiro, please, i don't wanna stay that long!" james practically begs, then is silent for a couple of minutes as shiro talks. he then sighs defeatedly, running a hand through his hair as he glances over at the nursery door still ajar, the baby peacefully asleep in her crib. "okay, okay, i'll stay. lemme just text someone so they can watch the baby."

keith perks up and then looks over at james, who looks back. "let me watch her," he mouths.

"are you sure?"

a nod in response.

james sighs and then goes back to talking into the phone. "okay, keith will watch her. yeah, i'll be there in a few minutes. see you."

he hangs up and then walks into the nursery, keith pausing the show and getting up to follow him.

"i don't know why you're so concerned about someone watching over the thing. can't we just, like.. turn it off or something?"

"we can't do that with a real baby, keith," james snaps, even though he doesn't mean to, "and besides, even if we could, it would be pointless to be doing this."

keith sighs and walks out of the room while james stays looking down at the baby for a couple more minutes. he then goes to their bedroom to get ready. within a couple minutes, he's out the door and keith and the baby are alone at home.

* * *

keith is watching a documentary when the crying starts, and he groans inwardly as he pauses the program and gets up off the couch. he goes into the room--where he purposefully had the door shut--and glances down at the creepy doll, tears streaming down its face as it wails.

now that he's staring at it, it's somehow even more creepy than he expected it to be.

he picks the baby up and holds her at arms' length, and she continues her wailing and squirming, almost seeming to cry harder at the fact that it's him that's holding her and not james.

unfortunately, he's away at the garrison, doing flight exercises with his team as ordered by shiro. great.

"what the hell do you want?" keith asks through gritted teeth, soon scolding himself internally for talking to her directly. he tries a bottle, a pacifier, he even tries bouncing her, although he does so a little roughly and that just makes her cry louder, if that's even possible. oh, boy, he can hear the neighbors complaining already.

"dammit, i don't know what the fuck you want!" he yells out, setting the doll down on the couch and putting his head in his hands. he's almost about to cry himself, he's that frustrated.

he doesn't know why, but his brain tells him to show a picture of james to her, so he pulls out his phone and pulls up a decent-looking picture. the doll sets her eyes on it and stops crying slowly, just staring at the phone with curiosity and cooing, the first time she's cooed at him. well, technically, she's cooing at the phone, but keith'll take it. the phone then goes off and scares her back to crying, and keith inwardly curses the phone for scaring her--no, no, it's it, it's a fucking _doll_.

he sighs defeatedly and looks down at the tiny helpless little doll, figuring he should do something about it before shiro calls him up and asks him why she's been crying for so long without care. he's... he's pretty sure that shiro's tracking their progress like a high school teacher, right?? _right_???

either way, keith picks her up and cradles her against his chest, holding her correctly this time. he bounces her, gently this time, and coos at her, the first itme he's talked directly to her. it's... actually kinda cute the way she snuggles into him and calms down.

he brings her back to the nursery and sits in the rocking chair, moving her up to his shoulder and gently patting her back. finally he hears her slow and steady "breathing", and gently places her back in the crib.

james finally comes home and sees keith standing at the crib, watching over their "daughter". his heart immediately melts.

"so i see you've finally warmed up to her," he says out loud, startling keith and making him feign disinterest.

"i was just doing what i was expected to do, that's all," the other defends, feeling a twang in his heart that tells him he's lying, "i just wanna please shiro by not having it cry for longer than a couple minutes is all."

"mm-hmm," james drawls out teasingly, "suuuure you were."

keith rolls his eyes and shuts the door to the nursery, plopping back down on the couch and resuming his documentary. james joins him a couple minutes later with a water in hand, and surprisingly, the other doesn't object when he wraps an arm around him and pulls him close.


	6. Decisions, Decisions.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and James decide on baby names.

james looks so peaceful with the baby on his chest in the recliner, keith absolutely hates to admit. but they're just... so freaking cute! how are they so cute? nothing can ruin this moment...

except a knock at the door, which is unfortunately what happens a couple moments later.

the baby immediately curls in on herself and begins to wail, and that wakes james with a start. keith sighs and gets up to go check who's at the door.

it's... _shiro_?? with a **_baby_**?????

"uhh," keith draws out curiously, "shiro, what're you doing here?"

"oh, hey, keith," shiro greets casually, "may i come in?"

"of course, sorry," keith moves out of the way as shiro steps in, still eyeing the baby strapped to his chest, which looks a lot like him, "so, uh, what brings you here?"

"just checking in," shiro sits down on the couch, "seeing how you're holding up with the baby."

"well, it's been.. stressful."

"yeah, i heard about the store incident. i'm proud of the both of you for standing up for yourselves and your child. you guys really came through, though."

james comes back into the living room after putting the baby down in her crib for a nap, finally having settled her down, and sits next to keith on one arm of the recliner. "so you're undertaking this project too, captain?"

"yeah," shiro nods, looking down at the baby, "curtis wanted to do it with me. he wanted twins, though, which i at first told him was ridiculous, but eventually, i caved and we now have adam and addison shirogane."

"cute," james gushes, "you should bring them both over sometime so we can have a little play date."

keith gives him a look that he just ignores.

"anyways, yeah, we're doing good," keith responds, "even though she is a pain in the a--"

"don't listen to him, captain," james interrupts, gaining an eyeroll from keith, "he's just having a harder time bonding with her, is all. he'll get used to her eventually."

"i hope so," shiro says, "it's only about three more months that you guys have with her before we pass her on to the younger students."

"wait," james replies, "pass her on? in three months?"

"well, yeah, you guys won't be able to keep her. she's a trial baby so we have to take her back at some point."

"what will you guys do when you take her back?"

"we'll erase her memory chip and put in a blank one. that way she's like new."

"i didn't know that," keith says, "time sure flies by, doesn't it?"

"yeah," james whispers, sadness in his eyes. he then gets up and goes back into the nursery, shutting the door behind him.

shiro then gets up himself, and looks over at the closed nursery door before looking back at keith and giving him a sad smile. "tell griffin i'm sorry about that."

"nah, it's fine," keith responds, smiling a bit.

"see you three around?" shiro asks, stroking his baby's hair as the little one begins to squirm and whine a bit.

"yeah."

and with that, shiro is out the door and driving off.

* * *

"what about," james looks over the list of names he'd grabbed from a baby naming site, "juliet?"

keith looks down at the doll, who is busying herself with sucking on the rattle that james had given to her. "hmmm... nah, she doesn't really look like a juliet."

"m'kay," james crosses the name out, "no juliet. what about madeline?"

"nah," keith shakes his head, "still doesn't fit."

another name crossed off the list. "laelyn?"

"no."

"krolia." a snort.

"absolutely not."

a heavy sigh. "then look over this list and you can decide."

james hands the paper over to keith and picks the doll up, cradling her in his arms.

keith ponders over the list, finally landing on a name that he believes will suit her. before consulting with james about his name choice, he looks over at the baby, then at the name, then back to the baby.

"bella."

james looks up from the doll and stares at keith for a moment.

"bella?"

"yeah." is that a smile? james can swear that's a smile. "she kinda looks like a bella."

"y.. yea," he then focuses attention back to the baby who's grabbed hold of his t-shirt, "bella is perfect."

keith smiles directly at james this time, then looks down at little bella. "you've finally got a name, huh, little girl?"

bella coos at keith, and he chuckles, heart pounding with pride. 


	7. A Sweet Bonding Moment.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James gets some alone time with baby Bella.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for emetophobia!

"okay, i'm off," keith states to james, throwing a sack over his shoulder, "don't get too excited about spending time alone with your daughter, m'kay?"

" _our_ daughter," james retorts playfully, chuckling as he presses a kiss to his partner's cheek, "and don't worry, i've got it all under control."

"yea, i know, but try not to spoil her too much. i know how you can get."

" _whaaaat_?"

"remember when you came home with three packs of outfits for her one time?"

james sighs. "okay, i'll try not to."

keith is about to head out the door when little bella coos at him, and he turns to see her big violet eyes peering at him. he sighs defeatedly and goes over to her, kneeling down on one knee and ruffling her hair as she squirms happily in her bouncy chair.

"bye, kiddo," he says, standing back up, "make sure to give your dad a hard time for me, hm?"

"hey!"

"i'm joking," keith laughs, "but seriously, you two, have fun."

"we will," james says, stuffing a hot pocket into his mouth.

keith gives him one last smile before finally heading out the door.

"alright, princess," james walks over to bella and unstraps her from the bouncy chair, "looks like it's just you and daddy, hm?"

he cradles her in one arm and grabs his plate with the other, walking into the nursery and sitting down in the armchair with her. she begins squirming as he lays her on his chest, knocking his plate out of his hands and onto the floor.

"hey," he whines a bit, "daddy was going to finish that off."

bella begins to whine herself, still squirming as james stands up and grabs the fallen plate, bringing it out to the kitchen.

"alright, alright," he sighs, "i'll make breakfast for you."

he prepares the bottle, and she feeds pretty well. almost the entire bottle is gone before bella decides she's finished.

"good job," james praises, placing the bottle by the sink for washing later.

he gets bella to burp after only three pats to the back, but then...

she pukes up basically her entire breakfast.

james groans as he feels the vomit slide down his shirt. what makes it worse is that bella starts to scream as if she's actually hurting, which makes his stomach twist.

he decides to change his shirt later. all that matters right now is getting his baby girl calm and, quite frankly, clean.

running a bath in the part of the kitchen sink not occupied by drying dishes, he gets her undressed and _she's still screaming, why is she still screaming?? is she hurt? please don't let her be hurt._

thank goodness she starts to settle a little bit when he places her in the warm water--which he had checked at least fifteen times before. she still squirms, though, but at least she's not wailing her little eyes out anymore. he coos to her while washing her hair and body, and once she's all rinsed off, he drains the water and scoops her out, not caring that she's soaking wet.

what he does care about, though, is her shivering like a little puppy. james goes into the bathroom to search for a towel, and he finds a small one thankfully not strewn about the floor--keith and him really need to talk about getting a hamper for this damned bathroom--to wrap her little body up in.

he holds her close to him and is glad when, after a minute, she's not shivering anymore. james then takes off his soiled shirt, brings out the wrap that she had become a huge fan of, and puts it on, lining it with the towel and then placing bella inside.

"better?"

the coo from the baby seems to answer his question. he decides to do some stuff around the house, simple cleaning, taking the trash out, laundry, and putting the dry dishes away and cleaning the dirty ones. after doing that, bella decides it's time for another feeding, and james makes sure she drinks slower this time, as well as burping her every ounce rather than just letting her gulp it all down as quickly as she did.

fortunately for them both, with that method, no spit-ups occur. throwing the used towel into the hamper in the laundry area, he takes bella to the living room for some playtime. lying her down on her stomach, he lays beside her and occasionally glances up at the television between cooing to her and shaking her rattle to distract her as well as see if she can hold her head up on her own. so far, not that great, but it's okay, she'll get there.

after a while of doing this, james decides that it's about time for a little nap for the both of them. shutting off the tv, he scoops the baby up from the boppy pillow she was lying on and heads into his and keith's bedroom. he makes a little spot on the bed for her so a) she won't go rolling off the bed, and b) he can be beside her without worrying about rolling over on top of her.

she fusses a bit when he puts her down, but as soon as he's beside her, she calms down almost instantly. he chuckles and pulls her little bed closer to his side, and they are both out like a light, with james' arm around bella's little torso and bella's tiny hand wrapped around james' pinky finger.


	8. Alone Time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Shiro and Curtis agree to watch Bella for a night, James and Keith finally get time to themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not to worry, all! i will be fading to black, so you can let your imaginations run wild!!

"'kay, you guys all set?"

"yup, she'll be perfectly fine," shiro says, holding bella in one arm and the diaper bag in the other, "and she and the twins will have so much fun."

"okay, but don't forget to text or call us if something goes wrong or if she starts to be too much or if y-"

"alright, i think they get it," keith interjects, rolling his eyes and ushering shiro and curtis out the front door, "bye, guys, see you tomorrow."

"tomorrow?! we never agreed on t-"

a glare from his partner shuts james up. curtis gives the anxious young father a small reassuring smile, and they're soon in the car and backing out of the driveway. keith sighs and shuts the front door behind him, glancing over at james to see if he's okay now.

he still looks anxious, almost looking like he wants to rush out the door and chase the car down if keith weren't right in front of it.

"hey," the other snakes his arms around his waist, pulling him closer and beginning to pepper small kisses against james' chin, "she'll be okay."

"mm.." james hums, "you sure??"

"yes," keith responds, purring, "and we get this time to do something we haven't done in a while."

"mm, i think i know where this is going..."

keith then pushes james back on the couch and, lips against lips, starts to grind on the other's waist. james moans into the kiss, and his hands make their way up the back of his partner's shirt, running his fingers along keith's spine and making the other moan in response.


End file.
